Parenting

After more than three hours of debate on Tuesday, Britain's upper house of parliament approved a law passed by the House of Commons earlier in the month to allow a controversial "three person IVF technique" that doctors say can prevent some incurable genetic diseases. The move makes the United Kingdom the first nation in the world to allow the treatment, which critics fear will lead to "designer babies." The technique is actually called mitochondrial transfer, but is known as "three-parent" in vitro fertilization (IVF) because the babies are born from genetically modified embryos with DNA from a mother, father, and female donor. The process removes faulty mitochondrial DNA, thus negating such inherited conditions as liver failure, blindness, and muscular dystrophy. Despite still being at the research stage in the Britain as well as in the United States, where it is technically illegal, now that the legal hurdles are out of the way, experts say Britain's first three-parent baby could … [Read more...] about Britain becomes first country to legalize ‘3-parent’ babies

Britain's fertility regulator has decided that "three-parent baby" treatments can go ahead, opening the way for parents to be treated as early as next spring. This landmark decision makes Britain the first country in the world to offer licenses for this treatment. Earlier this year, a baby was born in Mexico through the technique. The board of the Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority (HFEA) had been tasked with deciding whether clinics should be allowed to apply for permission to carry out mitochondrial replacement therapy (MRT). "It is a decision of historic importance," said Sally Cheshire, chair of the HFEA. The treatment aims to replace abnormal genes in the mitochondria, tiny, battery-like elements of cells that generate energy. Mitochondria hold just 0.1 percent of a person's DNA. It is always inherited from the mother and has no influence on characteristics like appearance or personality. Faulty mitochondria can cause a wide range of potentially fatal … [Read more...] about Britain becomes first country to approve ‘three parent babies’

An independent expert panel in Britain on Wednesday recommended that the three-parent IVF techniques be approved for "cautious" use. In a statement, the panel reported that "significant progress had been made" to improve the reliability of the procedure. But they warned that patients "should be made aware that there can be no guarantee of safety and efficacy" for the treatment. British media said the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) were now almost certain to give the go ahead for the treatment. Several newspapers speculated that the first babies born to three-parents could be conceived in 2017 following what was the panel's insistence that the treatments were offered only to "carefully selected patients." The panel said the procedures must be used "only in those patients who for medical reasons are ... unlikely to have any suitable embryos for transfer." Removing faulty DNA The controversial techniques involve intervening in the fertilization … [Read more...] about UK’s first three-parent babies could be born next year

The team of scientists in Newcastle aims to treat up to 25 patients per year, resolving problems related to mitochondria, the minuscule structures that produce energy inside cells. "Mitochondria diseases can be devastating for families affected, and this is a momentous day for patients," said Doug Turnbull, director of the research at Newcastle University on Thursday. Such disorders are passed down the maternal line and affect around one in 6,500 children worldwide. They can lead to serious conditions such as muscular dystrophy and organ failure. To bypass the problem, scientists take the DNA of the future mother from her egg and put it in a donor egg, from which the original DNA has been removed. The donor egg contains healthy mitochondria, which are then passed on to the child. Ultimately, the child would have about one percent of DNA from the donor, with his two parents accounting for the remaining 99 percent. Regulator still keeps watch Last year, US-based doctors said that … [Read more...] about UK grants first license for three-parent in-vitro (IVF) babies

382 parliamentarians in the House of Commons voted in favor of what is known in Britain as the "three-person baby," 128 voted against the legalization. At present, the procedure is banned in the United States. If the British House of Lords also votes in favor, it would make Britain the first nation in Europe where the creation of babies with DNA from two women and one man could become legal. For the past 15 years, a team of researchers at Newcastle University in Great Britain has been jumping over scientific and social hurdles to prevent the genetic transmission of mitochondrial disease, a debilitating condition that can lead to a range of organ and muscular deficiencies comprising heart failure, neurodegenerative disease, diabetes, dystrophy and an array of different cancers. This is how their "three-parent-baby" method works: A woman who suffers from mitochondrial disease and who desires children provides her genetic material, isolated from one single cell in a laboratory. A … [Read more...] about British parliament approves ‘three-parent-baby’ method to prevent genetic disease

DW: Mr. Roth, are you worried by a potential Brexit? Martin Roth: Yes, absolutely! Just the thought that we could be ruining everything our parents' generation achieved - a policy of peace, reconciliation and common thought - is quite a horrible perspective. Some liberal-minded Brits who want to exit the EU claim Europe is too small to be their connection with the rest of the world. Does this also apply to culture? This is not an easy question to answer. After living for five years in London, where I felt warmly welcomed, I know that this is an absolutely open society. It is open to new ideas on social issues and to global debates. It is an open country, and it has always been open. After spending centuries being used to the fact that parts of the family were living in India, New Zealand or Canada, some might perceive being directed by Brussels as a limitation. So does this perception apply to culture as well? Of course, culture is always open. On the other hand, there are many … [Read more...] about V&A director Martin Roth on Brexit: ‘We could be ruining everything our parents achieved’

When forensic pathologist Michael Tsokos is called, it's already too late. "There's a small child lying in front of a huge tower of equipment in intensive care and it's clear: He will probably never regain consciousness." Tsokos then has the task of finding out, based on marks on the body, how the tragedy occurred. "They often say at first that the child had fallen off the couch. If you then tell the parents that this is not possible, they come up with a new story, that the child had climbed up the shelves and fell off." Tsokos knows these explanations well - they are always the same. "When I started in forensic medicine almost 20 years ago as a young medical assistant, I always thought these were isolated cases. But the same patterns happened again and again." Today, Tsokos is Director of the Institute of Forensic Medicine at Berlin's Charité University Hospital. In his career he has conducted autopsies on about 80 children who died from injuries sustained through physical … [Read more...] about When parents turn violent

The parents of American aid worker Peter Kassig, who has been captured by "Islamic State" terrorists and threatened with execution, have posted a video message pleading with the Islamists for their son's release. "We implore his captors to show mercy and use their power to let our son go," Peter's father Ed Kassig said in the video message. "Please know that we are all praying for you and your safe return," Kassig's mother Paula said. "Most of all know that we love you and our hearts ache for you to be granted your freedom so that we can hug you again, and then set you free to continue the life you have chosen, the life of service to those in greatest need," Kassig's mother said. On Friday night, IS militants posted a video showing the killing of 47-year-old British aid worker Alan Henning. Kassig is also threatened in the video. Kassig's parents say in the video that their son Peter has led a life devoted to helping others and humanitarian causes. "When he saw the suffering of … [Read more...] about Parents of captured US aid worker post video plea

Access to the rescued Chibok girls has proven to be very difficult especially for their parents. The Nigerian government says it is looking after the 103 girls because it wants to offer them proper rehabilitation. However, Hosea Tsambido Abana, chairman of the Chibok community, told DW, the arrangement may cause problems in the future. "One of the indices of rehabilitation is having free access, especially to the people they were together with before the abduction," Abana said. According to him there should have been a way of meeting the girls once during their monthly community meeting. This would help to build a relationship and see whether they are ready to be assimilated into the community or not. "Now they are kept under secured conditions. Parents can see them, but how long? Even if the parent came to [the capital] Abuja, they see them under security guard, they can't even talk freely with their own parents," Abana added. Where should the … [Read more...] about Chibok girls: parents split over rehabilitation

After watching his daughter on video for the first time since she was abducted two years ago, Yakubu Kabu is torn between relief and fear. "When I heard her voice, I realized that this is my daughter. I am very happy. Since they went to that place, I didn't hear anything from her," he told reporters in Nigeria's capital, Abuja. But for Kabu and his wife, the sleepless nights are set to continue. "She's not in a good condition. She has grown slim; she was not like that," Kabu said. "We want the government to move quickly, because some girls are suffering. They are very, very sick; some are in a terrible condition," he added. In the video, their daughter, probably speaking under duress, begged the parents of the girls to pressure the Nigerian government to release imprisoned Boko Haram fighters in exchange for the more than 200 girls who were abducted from their school in Chibok two years ago. She also said that many girls had been killed by Nigerian military airstrikes against … [Read more...] about Chibok parents demand negotiations with Boko Haram after video release